A Year's Difference
by BrandyyElizabeth
Summary: Austin left a year ago, leaving behind his home town, his music career, and most importantly, his love, Ally. He comes back on an important day but things that he hoped had changed, don't and must prove to Ally that leaving was a mistake. But the real reason he left is what no one ever expected. /Ally, i'm still madly, deeply, and unavoidably in love with you./
1. Coming Back

After a year, I thought things would be different.

I hoped that feelings would change, people would be forgotten, and memories would fade.

But hopes falters and crashes down like a plane without fuel.

I know it's my fault. I'm the one who left, but I had my reasons. It was a necessary action to save, not only myself, but the ones around me.

It was selfish, or so I heard. There were quiet murmurs after that spoke that I must be the biggest jerk ever. Some said she cried, some said she was better off.(And I was dying to know which but I couldn't ask. I kept my mouth shut.) But either way, everyone hated my after I left. I was no longer the most popular and charming guy in Miami. I became just like every other guy on the whole planet, not worth anyone's time.

But what they think or say, especially behind my back doesn't affect me like everyone think it should. I kept on going, trying to forget everything and everyone I left behind, while fighting with my career.

I kept arguing with myself as if I was my own immortal enemy. Whether to go back to the place I miss so much or stay in the dread of any other city doing business work without the comfort of home. The easiest answer was to go back to Miami but there was something stopping me like a big road sign in the middle of the straightest of asphalt.

_Her._

The only person in the world that meant anything to me. And she still does.

It's been a year and I silently prayed on my plane ride from Denver to the big city in Florida that she moved on.

Again, I thought I'd be over her. I thought that after a full year of no communication and endless hours of late night paper work and a few calls to a taxi begged to bring a hopeless soul from the local bar home that this girl would not still invade my mind or matter to me at all.

But things change, and after a slim year, things don't change that much.

And as she's standing there, just a maximum of six feet away from me, she's still the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. _Ally, you're still gorgeous. _In her deep blue gown, ready for her named to be announced so she can scurry across stage, stumble over her words a few times and almost trip over her own two feet, she looks ravishing. She looks happy.

_Ally, are you happy without me?_

Her friends are gathered around her, giggling and whispering encouraging words.

"_You can do this, Ally."_

"_Ally Dawson, you got this."_

"_Just take one step at a time and breathe."_

Her friends seem nice but I only recognize one. Trish De La Rosa. We used to be close a year ago, good friends. But I made sure to never talk to her again after I left.

_Ally, turn around._

Trish notices me first. A cloud of confusion hangs in her black eyes as her eyebrows furrow. I always used to laugh at that, because it looked like two caterpillars slowly crawling together. A glint remains until sparks fly and she recalls who I am. She gasps loudly.

_Ally, please look at me._

Ally turns around to see the horror her best friend had suddenly caught the attention of. It could be anything. Two pink shoes that so do not go with another girls dress, a loose hair clip, or just a really cute guy because that's how Trish's mind works.

But none of that is evident. She spots the one thing that she never thought would ever vision in front of her again.

The one guy that she gave everything too. The one guy she was happiest with. The one guy that left her when she thought times were the best. The one guy that broke her.

For a second, she seems excited- surprised but excited. The corners of her mouth tilts up, and her eyes sparkle in a way they haven't in a while.

_Ally, you still feel the same way? We can make this work. Forgive me for everything I have done but I promise-_

Then a cold shiver creeps down her spine like a snake climbing down a tree, and her whole body shakes. Her face resembles the presence of disgust and sadness. And the start of tears gather up in the base of her eyes, threatening to fall.

Her whole day is ruined now, because of me. I never wanted to be the cause of her pain, the reason of her tears, but now I am. And I am forced face that and take on the hurt. It wallows me up and I battle against, try to claw my way out.

But then unexpectedly, she takes a deep breath, carves out a fake smile, and gently waves. Her fingers look frail as if they are going to break off at any minute. Her shoulder turns towards me.

Out of the corner of my eye, Trish shakes her head at me, almost in disapproval.

My head is aching, my legs are wobbling, and my heart feels like its crumbling like dry pastries. It shouldn't be this way. Maybe she's doing better, but my feelings were brought with me every where I went. Nothing has changed for me. The beauty of what existed a year ago still lingers on my skin, my lips, my heart. The taste of what we had never left even if I tried it hide it.

_Allyson Marie Dawson, I'm still madly, deeply, and unavoidably in love with you. _

"Ally Dawson!" Her name is proclaimed and she is asked to walk across the stage. She tears her gaze away from me, turns her body, and walks away.

The same as I did a year ago.


	2. Good Day Gone Bad

Leaving hurt me more than I ever imagined.

I cried for days. Hours after hours, I wept. I began sulking around my new classy apartment in some big city I don't even know how I got to.

I didn't know who I was anymore. I would wake up in the morning, damaged from the midday sun, burning holes where my eyes should be, without a single clue of what happened.

For the first five seconds of life when my eyes opened, I didn't remember anything. A smile would appear, because I thought I'd see Ally soon like usual. I would start to hum a creative melody, because I thought I'd play music and sing all day. I'd check my phone, because for sure by now Ally would have left a silly- but adorable good morning message.

But then I shiver trickles down my spine like a annoying leak. And the bright colors that spring like a rainbow inside me turn shades of grey. Dull and lifeless.

Then the questions come: Where am I? Why am I here? Who am I?

I answer myself with full resentment. _I am Austin Moon. I have started a new life. One without public music and Ally. _

Now, I go to a top-notch business everyday. For now, I'm only an assistant, but if my dad is still consistently putting good word in and I keep up the hard work, then I'll move up. It's now fun. It's not what I wanted to do, but playing music hurts too much now.

Often, I'll strum my guitar and sing a few verses of my favorites songs- that part of my life will never vanish. But it's different without Ally. There would be an empty hole in my heart and it'd grow bigger every time I'd play. I'd feel nauseous. My stomach felt like it was shredded into pieces. So, I gave up.

With Ally, I not only left my heart but my soul.

All I had left was my mind, and half the time is was full of home (Ally). Half the time it was full of work.

I took off a week of work to come here. I'll probably get fired. But I wasn't that important anyway. I was more like a maid than anything.

Besides being here for Ally's graduation was at the top of my list. Even after all this time, I promised I'd be there for her. So here I am.

I try to find her after she gets off stage, but there is only ten more people after her and there is already packs of people meeting their loved ones.

I slouch back and silently wait until the reception.

Everyone has left her alone. Her parents proudly let her be with her friends. And the only friend near her is Trish, and she is way to busy drooling over guys like a dog preparing to eat a bone.

I approach her carefully and nervously almost. Trish raises a lazy eyebrow, points her chubby fingers at me like daggers and walks away.

I turn to look at my gorgeous love. Her cheerfulness has seemed lost and her face is unidentified.

She tries to rush past me, but I grab her arm gently, swiftly pulling her back.

"Please, just dance with me." I know I'm begging, but my measures must go far. I might seem unmanly or weak, but my heart has crumbled with the stubbornness she has used against me. "Please."

Reluctantly, she places her hands where they should be-where they always used to go. I firmly wrap my arms around her, daring not to let her go (considering never to let her go again-ever). We sway perfectly towards the slow rhythm playing in the background. I stare intensely at her, admiring her delicate features, while she darts aimlessly at the floor.

"Your dancing has gotten better," I try to start a conversation, eager to how she would react.

"What are you even doing here?" Ally snaps her head up at me, voice firm and fearful. Her thin dark brown lines right about her eyes form together, crashing like a wave.

I'm confused. Doesn't she remember? My hearts stops for a slight second. She couldn't have forgotten.

"I promised I'd be here for you- especially on this day. Don't you remember?"

"Of course I do, but you left. Promises are called off once a person leaves."

"No one ever said I couldn't come back."

"No," Her face gets closer, her temper gets higher. Her beautiful brown doe eyes start to water, alligator tears begin to form in the droops of her eyelids. "Bu-but when someone you love leaves, there is no coming back. They're gone for good."

She peers down. One tear escapes her eyes and I come undone. I grip her tighter. I force her to look at me.

"Ally, don't cry. Don't you do this to me." I plead. The more and more I pore into her eyes, my eyes water.

By now, the music has long stopped. But we are still standing, arms intertwined, legs close. Two ex lovers who are tempted to cry and tempted to take it all back. Renew the past right here on the luminescent high school gym floor where ceremonies from years prior to present have been held.

She pushes away from her, a good two feet apart. A cold shadow transforms over me. I miss her warmth already.

"You don't know what you did to me. I haven't been the same since you left. I became isolated. The only friends I have now is Trish and a new girl that game 5 months ago. I stopped writing. Not completely, but enough to leave me plenty of time to wonder what I did wrong. Why you left suddenly. Why you stopped loving me back. Why I fell in love with a guy that was my best friend, knowing in the end I'd get hurt. Out of all people, I never expected that from you.

"And now you're back. You're here. For me. What am I supposed to do? Act like the past year of tears and pain never happened? That you never broke me? Austin, I'm done. I don't want this anymore. I don't want to get hurt again. Please, go back to wherever you escaped to get away from me."

She leaves. She runs for the bathroom.

I won't ruin her night anymore, I'll let her have fun with her friends and family for tonight.

But I won't give up.

Because when I came back and saw her, I knew I never stopped loving her and that I never will.

So I'll go back to my hotel I'm staying at for the weekend. I'll cry and I'll think of plans.

But I will win her back.

I pinky promise.

**Chapter 2. I'm really starting to like this. It won't be long, only like 5 chapters. But worth it ! **

**~BrandyyElizabeth**


	3. How I Feel

Words hurt. Little by little, they make their way to your heart and pierce tiny holes, pouring out a blood puddle of emotion.

I memorized everything Ally said. The way she said it, her tone of voice, how any minute she would break down like how she used too over the simplest thing.

And now, in this stuffy hotel room, the words replay through my mind like a broken record.

They sting. The words burn like acid decaying layers of my skin in a matter of seconds. A burning sensation that doesn't calm.

"I haven't been the same since you left…"

_Ally, what are you talking about? You're still the same sweet girl I always knew._

"…Wonder what I did wrong…"

_Honey, you were perfect. It was never your fault. It wasn't a choice I wanted to make, but in the end I'd knew it would be better for you. _

"Please, go back to wherever you escaped to get away from me…"

_I was escaping myself. I'd give anything to be with you, forever. By your side, forever. Feeling your love, forever. Forever and a day…_

Stop. It's killing me. With each word, I break even more. My heart crumbles. The gray clouds gloom an even darker shadow. My sun is no longer shining.

I hurt her. I broke her and I can barely live with myself. She was ready to leap into my arms and accept that I was going to be a part of her life forever. But I didn't catch her.

I imagine the tears stream down her face. A sobbing, broken hearted wonderful lady over a jerk like me. It's not right. Life sometimes is messed up.

But I had my reasons, ones she can't know.

So this is where my plans start to go into action.

It's 6:07 am on Saturday. Yesterday was Ally's high school graduation. Me, being a year ahead of her, already went through that with her caramel eyes gleaming proudly in the stands. I leave Monday morning. I have two days to prove that I can be the man she needs.

My plan goes as following (that is if all goes accordingly and she agrees):

-bring her a dozen of red roses (her favorite flowers because they represent the ripest romance)

-ask her on a friendly dates- not too pushy

-catch up

-sing her a song

-kiss

Hopefully, she'll love it and see the person I can be just for her.

The only person I want to be for the rest of my life.

**Yeah I know, it was boring. But it was just a filler. Soon, you'll find out why Austin left. It will be longer then five chapters. Just please continue to to keep reading and reviewing. It will get better.**


	4. Knock Knock

Sweaty palms, firsts clenched, and a massive lump lodged in the middle of my throat like a gigantic iceberg in the vast sea.

Like how I get when an important paper is due tomorrow, and stacks of work is piled up on the one place on my desk in a tiny office. Or when I'm strolling back to my apartment and I see a group of older and much heftier guys heads towards me. They stare me down as if I'm the last piece of meat in a meat locker and they are the vicious lions stalking their prey. Honestly, I get majorly scared. New York City is not the safest city and I'm not the most buff guy.

But in this case, it's for a girl. The only girl I've ever gotten nervous about.

I take one step and gulp. Her doorstep is all too familiar.

Nothing has changed. There still stands a wooden door, with a black clip latched on, and small dents to perfectly sit your knuckles and bang on the door. Two swings are still hanging for the dull beige porch ceiling on both sides near the decorative railing. I remember how we would sit together in one of those, slowing rocking, while lying in they others lap. Smiling, cuddling, kissing, being happy.

The flaps on the windows are not the aqua blue anymore though. Now tinted with a grassy green. It looks nice.

As I knock, I begin to wonder if anything in the inside has changed. I've seen it all before, a thousand times. I know every inch, every nook and cranny in this old, mid 70's house. Two black streaks near the fireplace where the smoke would bellow, a chip off of the third wooden step, and the hole near the hall closest- the aftermath of one of her parents fights when she was seven. The last time I was there, it was covered by an umbrella stand, barely peeking out at the sides of the plastic cover.

I hear footsteps, light and buoyant.

The doorknob turns.

The heavy door creaks to show Ally.

She looks surprised; her curly brown hair swaying sideways as she quickly takes a step back.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," I say truthfully, handing her the flower I have been hiding behind my back; a simple single red rose.

Carefully, she takes it and lays it on the table by the umbrella stand where all the family pictures are presented. Two of her, one of her brother, and three of them together. I no longer see a couple of her parents. Nonexistent memories are now replaced with layers of dust.

She then turns to me and with an acute smile, I expect her to hug me. Instead, she puts a hand on the door and

SLAM.

I'm left standing on a porch, by myself, head down.

This isn't like her, not like how she used to be. The sweet Ally would never ever in a million years close a door in someone's face, even if she hated them like dirt under her shoe.

I knock again. And again. And again. In the past eight and a half minutes, I've knocked about five times, three hits in one try.

Just as I'm about to knock again, she opens the door, an angry display on her face. I have to admit, it makes me giggle because she looks so adorable. The way her eyebrows knit together, her lips pursed in a tight circle, her eyes just a shade darker than the caramel brown, always full of light green specks.

"Are you ever going to give up?" She demands, pulling me out of my trance.

I shake my head, "Never," and I smile because it's true. Even if takes a lifetime.

Her left eyebrow rises, creating a dark arch. She's planning on closing the door, again, but I stop her.

"Wait. Wait. Please don't close the door. I just wanted to see you. I want to ask if maybe you like to go with me the diner and catch up. Just as friends." My smile drops. I've resorted to begging.

Her face softens, "I don't think it's such a go-"

"Please," I plead.

She hesitates, looking back in her house even though she never left the doorway.

"Fine. Just let me get my coat."

She leaves and I feel the urge to follow. But I can't, I wasn't invited. I so badly want to see her room again, relive the memories. I want to feel the comfort again, not the stringy tension where its hard to just look at her.

I want to know if her room is still the light purple, if the gray curtains still flow with a slight breeze of the of window she never closes, and if the yellow sheets I laid on so many times, got twisted and covered up with, are still as soft as the day's clouds.

I want to revisit the past, turn back time, switch the clock. Anything to have Ally in my arms. I grieve for it terribly, that the pit in my stomach drops one hundred stories and my knees shake.

But I stand because here comes Ally and here comes the chance to make things right again. I push my sorrow to the back of my mind. All that matters is Ally and how the confusion on her face mixes with a bit of worry.

**Oh gosh. Can't wait for the upcoming chapters. Please please please review if you want more, I have been feeling down and im trying my best to continue. I will only do it for you !**


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